


Keep Your Eyes on Me

by BumbleBum



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Bipolar Disorder, Emotionally Constipated Nathan Prescott, Explicit Language, F/M, Mental Health Issues, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-23
Updated: 2017-12-23
Packaged: 2019-02-19 06:40:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13118178
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BumbleBum/pseuds/BumbleBum
Summary: "Maxine Caulfield, right?" Nathan practically sneered as he stepped on to the pavement, fists clenching and unclenching as he neared the pair. The name lay thick on his tongue but he quickly shook the feeling and lightly shoved the other boy out of the way. "Heard you were talking to Mr. Wells this morning. Happen to say anything about me, hm?"Max obviously hadn't been expecting him to approach her but it wasn't like the teen was actually going to do harm to her. He was just there to scare her but she didn't know that, which was probably why her shaken posture had lasted for a few seconds before vanishing. The step that she had taken back didn't go unnoticed as she straightened herself, chest puffing out slightly and her chin raising just a fraction while she glared at the boy. Her lips pursed and her bottom lip seemed to stick out a little more so than the top. She was going to stand her ground and Nathan found that amusing. This girl was no more intimidating than a kitten.-Or the one where Nathan wasn't connected to Rachel’s death and has his own issues to deal with rather than help solve some mystery meant for the Scooby Gang.





	Keep Your Eyes on Me

**Author's Note:**

> Any serious warnings for the chapter will be listed here.
> 
> * **Spoilers**  for the Life Is Strange game will be present in later chapters*

    Walking into Jefferson's classroom always made Nathan uncomfortable. There was just something about that man's whole being that made his stomach churn and the hairs on the back of his neck prickle. Even when the guy wasn't looking in his direction, Nathan felt as if his gaze were boring into him, burning through his brain. Or perhaps that was just his meds but nonetheless, Mark Jefferson freaked him the _fuck_ out. He had to give him some credit but not all, of course. It wasn't just Jefferson's eyes that followed him-- it was _everyone's_ and that freaked him out even more. It was like they knew something that he didn't, even if that couldn't be the case because Nathan Prescott had nothing to hide. Well, he had no more to share than what any other person did. 

 

    Today was just like any other day except for something that Nathan couldn't seem to put his finger on, but he assumed that if he couldn't figure it out, then it must not be that big of a deal. There was one thing different about his usual routine though. That blue haired bitch, Chloe Price, was being her usual self and started pestering the shit out of him about Rachel Amber, the Vortex girl who ditched her before going missing. Just because he hung out with her a few times didn't mean that he was involved with her, or in anything. The Prescott would have been able to handle it if she hadn't been insisting on uncovering all this nonexistent shit on him and ''taking his ass down'' for what he had supposedly done. His anger was rising through the roof and he was going to tear it the fuck down if she didn't leave him alone so he tried to get away to the bathroom. But instead of going to the guy's he stumbled into the girls' bathroom by accident to which she used against him. He didn't do anything to the girl except threaten her and shove her a little bit. 

 

    Shortly after leaving her and arriving to his first class, Nathan was called into Principal Wells' office. He wasn't concerned considering that he had never really gotten in trouble at Blackwell but whenever he was called up there it was usually over his father or someone complaining about his actions. Once he was there and seated in an uncomfortable chair, he was met with an unimpressed look the man cast him. Nathan was informed that someone had tattled on him for going into the wrong damned bathroom and ''harassing'' a girl. Almost instantly, the eighteen year old called bullshit and got into a long discussion on why he can't be doing such immature things at such a prestigious academy that his father so graciously provided for. Which was also bullshit because all his father wanted were puppets and there was no way that he would ever go for someone like Chloe Price. Just like that he was given a warning that he hadn't been given a thousand times before, the name of who snitched, and was then sent back to class. He was left to wonder who the fuck Maxine Caulfield was up until his fourth period with Mark Jefferson. Who, of the 21st century, names their child Maxine?

 

    A yawn bubbled up in his throat as the teacher went on and on about turning in pictures for the "Everyday Heroes Photo" contest. Did he care about it? Not really but it was mandatory that all students in the class turn in a picture for the event. It was all a load of bull and Nathan knew he wasn't going to get the spot so why even bother? He was Nathan Prescott and he had the money but he was no suck up. 

 

    Speaking of suck ups, was Victoria wanting him to stay behind with her while she worked her magic on the old man? What she found in him he didn't know and proceeded to question her. He once told her that he was just a geezer to which her response was, ''Yes, but he's a hot geezer. Successful, too. Have you even seen his work?" She was mocking him and he knew it. Of course he had seen as well as heard of Mark Jefferson's work. The work was brilliant though Nathan couldn't possibly find a mentor in that man or anything more or less. His anxiety would probably boil up to the point that he'd OD on his medicine over that shit. Instead of following Victoria once class ended, the teen stayed behind at the table that their group previously occupied, picking at the Chanel purse the blonde had left behind. He mumbles under his breath to himself to try and block out the flirty tone that envelopes the girl's voice when she talks to Jefferson and keeps his head down to avoid any unwanted eye contact. The sound of someone walking passed him seconds later is what caught his attention. Apparently they weren't the only others still in the room. 

 

    "Mr. Jefferson, can I talk to you for a minute?" It was a girl speaking and her voice is timid and soft. It had a twinge of raspiness to it-- almost like she had a cold and Nathan suddenly finds himself interested because he's never heard this person before. Even then he kept his head down. For a moment he forgot why he was still in the classroom and then he remembered Victoria and her purpose. She hated being interrupted. 

 

    Jefferson gave his greeting as Victoria expressed her annoyance and there was a short pause before the girl apologized and began to abort what ever mission she was on. Nathan snorted quietly because he thinks he knows exactly how this is all going to play out, and then Victoria is huffing because the geezer practically tells her that what the other girl has to say is more important. As soon as the brunet sees the fluttering of V's skirt out of the corner of his eyes as she turns to leave, he lifts himself from his seat and grabs her purse before following. It's only then that he gets to see what the owner of that voice looks like. 

 

    She was a little shorter than him by a few inches and she's shifting her weight to her right foot as she tells Mr. Jefferson that she doesn't think she'll be able to get her picture in on time. Her whole demeanour screams nervous but her soft tone masks it well. The girl looks plain from behind; she wore jeans, white sneakers, a grey jacket, and a satchel. Then Nathan's passing by her and he catches a whiff of strawberries and for a split second his nose tingles and the same sensation runs down his spine and spreads all the way to the tips of his fingers to the bottoms of his toes. Maybe he's caught a cold now, he thinks as he passes the female. Her brown hair stops short above her shoulders and sways as she shifts her body. Now Nathan can see the light freckles dusting across her cheeks and the gentle slope of her nose. He sees the pink of her tongue as she wets her dry lips and takes note of how plump they are-- though not too thin or big. The brunette is petite and looks like a mix between a hipster and book nerd. It's fitting, really. 

 

    Was she new? She couldn't have been in this class all this time and have him not see her. 

 

    "Fucking Selfie Whore." Victoria grumbles under her breath. She spits the words out but they aren't laced with the amount of venom or disdain that she probably anticipated. Nathan's just about to ask how she knows her when he picks up on the other conversation in the room. 

 

    Mr. Jefferson tuts before scolding gently, "Max Caulfield, you are _better_ than that. I don't want to hear any excuses. If it's a lack of motivation, then I can try and help but there's no reason you shouldn't be able to turn this photo in." His tone is bordering between concern and determination. He leans against the edge of his desk and folds his arms across his chest after fixing his glasses. 

 

    Nathan almost stops at the name but lets his breath hitch quietly instead, his brain focusing on their teacher for a millisecond. For some reason his mind jumps to the negative and he's disgusted. _If it's a lack of motivation, then I can try and help._ As soon as the thought appears it's gone and he's jumping back to that name. _Max Caulfield_. His dark blue eyes meet an unknowing pair of a lighter shade and before he even realizes it, his eyes are narrowing and the corner of his lip is twitching back into a slight snarl as he clenches his jaw.  This was Maxine Caulfield? The narc who ratted him out and _lied_ in the process?

 

    Nathan wasn't angry about the fact that this wannabe hipster told on him, no, because this wasn't anything serious. He was mad about the fact that she took it upon herself to get involved over something so little that was completely none of her business. Out of all of the things he had done at that school, he had been reported for accidentally going to the wrong bathroom and getting his harasser to leave him alone. Did she think she was doing some type of justice by getting the wrong person? The thing was was that Price didn't even go to the academy anymore! If she was caught on a campus of a school that she didn't even go to whilst in the middle of harassing a student, then she would be totally annihilated. Especially if word got out that she was messing with Nathan. Sincere or not, people loved bending over backwards for a Prescott. But no. That wasn't how it went, which is why the boy found himself storming into the parking lot of Blackwell Academy with the intention of confronting Max Caulfield. 

 

    The girl was standing next to a guy wearing some ugly striped shirt. He looked anxious as well as happy with whatever they were talking about and for a second Nathan thought that they might be together but that didn't stop him from interrupting. If his memory was correct, then that guy's name was Warranth or at least something that began with a 'W'. He was the boy that Victoria tripped in the beginning of the school year and, for some reason, was always seen leaving Jefferson's class right before it started. The kid was too much of a science nerd to be into photography and kept a pretty low profile when it came to Blackwell.   
    

    "Maxine Caulfield, right?" Nathan practically sneered as he stepped on to the pavement, fists clenching and unclenching as he neared the pair. The name lay thick on his tongue but he quickly shook the feeling and lightly shoved the other boy out of the way. "Heard you were talking to Mr. Wells this morning. Happen to say anything about me, hm?"

 

    Max obviously hadn't been expecting him to approach her but it wasn't like the teen was actually going to do harm to her. He was just there to scare her but she didn't know that, which was probably why her shaken posture lasted for a few seconds before vanishing. The step that she had taken back didn't go unnoticed as she straightened herself, chest puffing out slightly and her chin raising just a fraction while she glared at the boy. Her lips pursed and her bottom lip seemed to stick out a little more so than the top. She was going to stand her ground and Nathan found that amusing. This girl was no more intimidating than a kitten. 

 

    "Excuse me?" Max's eyes narrowed even more as she gave him a cautious once over. She had anticipated some type of response but was left with silence when Nathan only gave her a look of impatience. There was no snarky response waiting to be used and she figured that that wouldn't have done any good in the first place. Surprise was overwhelming her because how could he know that she was the one to tell? Mr. Wells seemed like a nice guy so he couldn't have done that. These types of things were supposed to be confidential. "You were putting your hands on that girl. Your actions are as gentle as you look. This was all in the bathroom, too, the girl's bathroom might I add. What was I supposed to do?" 

 

    Looking at it from an outsider's point of view was difficult because Nathan wasn't really into that whole 'rational' deal he supposed, though he could see why the girl would see him as the bad guy.  Nonetheless, he was still stuck on the fact that she tried to take the whole thing into her own hands. What was she doing trying to do play hero? Even if Max was new this year how could she not have known how things would go down with Wells? Again, his father wanted puppets and that man was certainly one which meant that he would do whatever to get on Sean Prescott's good side. "Not stick your head into someone else's business? You don't even know the half of what was going down, you little narc. Do you even know who I am?"

 

    The smaller brunette wasn't having his attitude and wet her lips before firing, "Anybody else would have gone to Principal Wells about you, and I don't have to know half of what was going down to know that it wasn't good." She responded with ease as her friend shifted uncomfortably next to her probably contemplating whether or not he should intervene this quarrel himself. "Nathan. You're Nathan Prescott but that's not important." 

 

    Her last words were what confused him. Of course it mattered. He wasn't mad at this point, just spouting what ever came to his mind but she had him for a loss of words for a second or two. Max wasn't making fun of him or mocking him, even. She was legitimately telling him that his name didn't matter in this situation and he didn't know whether to be angry or a tad astonished. Everyone cared about Prescotts whether it be good or bad but this girl didn't seem to care either way. After a few seconds, Nathan finally opened his mouth to snap, " _Excuse me_?  You think that just because you're new you can do what you want? You see, this wasn't a big deal but I just wanted to tell you to stay the fuck out of my way.  _Nathan Prescott's_ way. So, yeah, that's important."

 

    With every word he bit back, the other male standing nervously beside him seemed to grow impatient. Warren was a nerd by heart and there was nothing more he hated than being caught up in a fight. Physical or not, it made him uncomfortable enough to want to crawl into his shell until everything was over, but the one who was catching the heat was his new friend, Max, and as much as he wanted to flee he couldn't just leave her there. Nathan was a hotshot, thought he was the topdog but he couldn't be that intense. Warren figured that he was all bark and no bite so he could just tell the guy to back off and then Max could finish telling him about her bizzaro day. He finally stepped in when he deemed the conversing to be too heated. "Hey, just back off a little okay?" The awkward teen stepped forward and placed his hand on Nathan's shoulder. 

 

    The feather-like touch on the Prescott's shoulder felt like molten lava, though the feeling started in his stomach and rose up as fast as lightning, rising up into his chest and branching off into two directions to set his shoulders aflame as well as to scorch his throat. If it was possible to breathe fire, then it would have happened at that very moment. The boy wasn't mad before, maybe a little heated, but he was nowhere near as worked up as he was now. The fire morphed into anger and as it did, Nathan's facial expression soured even more so than when he was dealing with Maxine. How he didn't get whiplash from spinning around so quick he did not know but what he did know was that Warren was very easy to spook. Before he even went to strike him, he saw the other's face contort into a mixture of surprise and panic. Warren hit the ground with a thud as Nathan spat through gritted teeth, "Don't fucking touch me." 

 

    "Nathan!" Max started and instantly reached out to said male who had just headbutted her friend. How could a situation so harmless escalate so quickly? Nathan himself had just told her that this whole ordeal wasn't anything major and then he just flips out! All Warren was trying to do was calm him down, he hadn't even provoked him. She surges forward and grasps his upper arm to lightly tug him back. "What's wrong with you?"

 

    "Get off," Nathan jerks away from her hold. Her touch was just as bad as the guy's and he didn't like it one bit. She was like electricity and it had him buzzing full of energy. He was mad and now felt so restless that he didn't know if he would be able to keep still or not. His hands were clutching into fists again as he took a second to glare at the boy on the ground before turning to sneer at the tattle tail, "This was just a warning, Caulfield, don't fucking meddle in my shit. Got that?" He was in her face now and he was staring daggers into her light blue eyes, searching for any type of understanding because she was quiet after his outburst. Her eyebrows were scrunched together and her lips were pursed as she met his stare. She was nervous, he knew, but he needed to hear her say that she understood so then he could leave and blow off steam. 

 

    Before that could even happen Nathan was being jerked back by the collar of his varsity jacket. A shaky, irritated breath left him as he grind his teeth together. He whipped his head around to face the person, ready to bite back whatever smart comment he could muster but resorted to grinding his teeth together again once he saw that it was the campus security guard. 

 

    "Nathan Prescott," Madsen snorted and proceeded to yank him back and away from the other two students. He knew exactly who this kid was and he knew what he stood for. The Prescott's were just a shady family whose only purpose was to bring in as much money for themselves as they could. Nathan Prescott was just a whiny teenager whose parents spoiled him way too much and in turn fucked him over in the long run. "You've just come from the principal's but I think you need another run. Go."

 

    Nathan's expression changed from anger to disbelief to anger again. He jerked away from the guard and fixed his jacket. Today had already gone to freaking ruins and it was only one in the afternoon. Madsen wasn't making it any better and if he thought he could actually get him in trouble he had another thing coming. "Bullshit," he scoffed and wet his lips before stalking off, ignoring the man as he ordered him to come back. 

 

    The boy grumbled under his breath as he kicked a rock with his shoe. There was no doubt he overreacted back there--big time, but he would be calm in a few minutes or so and then everything would be back to how it always was. It was just at small times like these that he really got worked up and he couldn't just keep that stupid burning feeling bottled up inside of his chest so he didn't explode with emotion. Too bad he could never seem to do that. If these people would just keep their mouths shut and stay in their own lanes, then maybe nothing bad would ever happen. Nathan was _always_ the one to stay in his own lane but apparently everyone just wanted to drift into his.

**Author's Note:**

> I have no clue where I'm going with this story or if I'm even going to continue it but feedback is widely encouraged and accepted! If there are any errors be sure to tell me, please. :)


End file.
